History Characters / TheGrishaverseRavka

* TheExtremistWasRight / VillainHasAPoint: The following ''Crows'' and ''Nikolai'' duologies illustrate just how terribly Grisha are treated around the world outside of Ravka (save for Novyi Zem) and how new developments in technology and warfare could either enslave or wipe them out altogether. ''The Witch of Duva'' and ''The Demon in the Woods'' take place in a time when Ravkan Grisha were forced to live as fugitives in fear of being slaughtered. Even at the time of the original trilogy a ''lot'' of non-magical Ravkan people still hate and fear the Grisha, despite the Second Army being all that stands between them and conquest by Fjerda or Shu Han; the Darkling was rightly worried that if the Shadow Fold were destroyed and the need for the Second Army diminished, Ravka might well have turned against its former protectors. In fact, when the Fold ''is'' destroyed things arguably become even worse for Ravka and its citizens, now that Fjerda and Shu Han can easily attack them; and Grisha are ''still'' discriminated against; at one point Zoya mentions certain towns forbid Grisha from owning property and will happily drive them from their homes. All of this serves to vindicate the Darkling's cause to make a ''truly'' safe place for Grisha. Plus he's had to endure numerous incompetent and corrupt Ravkan kings in the past, and the King he currently serves [[spoiler:and attempts to depose]], Alexander III, is genuinely awful.

* TheExtremistWasRight / VillainHasAPoint: The following ''Crows'' and ''Nikolai'' duologies illustrate just how terribly Grisha are treated around the world outside of Ravka (save for Novyi Zem) and how new developments in technology and warfare could either enslave or wipe them out altogether. ''The Witch of Duva'' and ''The Demon in the Woods'' take place in a time when Ravkan Grisha were forced to live as fugitives in fear of being slaughtered. And even at the time of the original trilogy a ''lot'' of non-magical Ravkan people still hate and fear the Grisha, despite the Second Army being all that stands between them and conquest by Fjerda or Shu Han; the Darkling was rightly worried that if the Shadow Fold were destroyed and the need for the Second Army diminished, Ravka might well have turned against its former protectors. In fact, when the Fold ''is'' destroyed things arguably become even ''worse'' for Ravka and its citizens, now that Fjerda and Shu Han can easily attack them. All of this serves to vindicate the Darkling's cause to make a ''truly'' safe place for Grisha. Plus he's had to endure numerous incompetent and corrupt Ravkan kings in the past, and the King he currently serves [[spoiler:and attempts to depose]], Alexander III, is genuinely awful.

* TheExtremistWasRight / VillainHasAPoint: The following ''Crows'' and ''Nikolai'' duologies illustrate just how terribly Grisha are treated around the world outside of Ravka (save for Novyi Zem) and how new developments in technology and warfare could either enslave or wipe them out altogether. ''The Witch of Duva'' and ''The Demon in the Woods'' take place in a time when Ravkan Grisha were forced to live as fugitives in fear of being slaughtered. And even at the time of the original trilogy a ''lot'' of non-magical Ravkan people still hate and fear the Grisha, despite the Second Army being all that stands between them and conquest by Fjerda or Shu Han; the Darkling was rightly worried that if Shadow Fold were destroyed and the need for the Second Army diminished, Ravka might well have turned against its former protectors. All of this serves to vindicate the Darkling's cause to make a ''truly'' safe place for Grisha. Plus he's had to endure numerous incompetent and corrupt Ravkan kings in the past, and the King he currently serves [[spoiler:and attempts to depose]], Alexander III, is genuinely awful.

* TheExtremistWasRight / VillainHasAPoint: The following ''Crows'' and ''Nikolai'' duologies illustrate just how terribly Grisha are treated around the world outside of Ravka (save for Novyi Zem) and how new developments in technology and warfare could either enslave or wipe them out altogether. ''The Witch of Duva'' and ''The Demon in the Woods'' take place in a time when Ravkan Grisha were forced to live as fugitives in fear of being slaughtered. And even at the time of the original trilogy a ''lot'' of non-magical Ravkan people still hate and fear the Grisha, despite the Second Army being all that stands between them and conquest by Fjerda or Shu Han; if the Shadow Fold had been destroyed and the need for the Second Army diminished, Ravka might well have turned against its former protectors. All of this serves to vindicate the Darkling's cause to make a ''truly'' safe place for Grisha. Plus he's had to endure numerous incompetent and corrupt Ravkan kings in the past, and the King he currently serves [[spoiler:and attempts to depose]], Alexander III, is genuinely awful.

* AbdicateTheThrone: [[spoiler: His son Nikolai forced him to abdicate and after that exiled him and his wife.]]

* SiblingRivalry: He and his younger brother Nikolai do not get along. Vasily accuses his brother of being a bastard and trying to steal his throne and Nikolai thinks his brother is lazy, unintelligent and that he would make a terrible king.
* SpannerInTheWorks: [[spoiler: Prince Vasily is normally just useless, but then he announces that he arranged a treaty with Fjerda by allowing them free access to the roads in Ravka without interference from the First Army. While the Darkling and his army are looking for a way to invade Os Alta. On the night the most important people in Ravka would all be in one place celebrating Nikolai's birthday.]]
* UpperClassTwit: Vasily is a prince and he is very unintelligent, arrogant and lazy. He is also way more interested in drinking and horses than in actually ruling a country. [[spoiler:Luckily he dies before he can become king.]]

* HeroicBastard: Nikolai is officially the son of the former king Alexander III and his wife, the queen, but there are some rumours that he was actually born from one of the queen's affairs. [[spoiler: This later turns out to be true when the queen tells him that his father is Magnus Opjer, a Fjerdan diplomat.]]
* InsistentTerminology: He is quite insistent that he is a privateer, not a pirate.

* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler: At the climactic confrontation of ''Ruin and Rising'', Mal, having realized that he's the third amplifier, guides a badly-wounded and utterly broken Alina into driving a knife to his chest, [[ExactWords taking her power to its logical conclusion.]]]]

* ItsAllAboutMe: He complains to Alina about how she doesn't have time for him anymore...while she's trying to keep the Second Army afloat, trying to help Nikolai's political game, and trying to keep a civil war from breaking out. [[SkewedPriorities Yeah]]...

* NoGuyWantsAnAmazon: Downplayed. Mal spends a lot of the series resenting Alina’s powers and the position they give her and wanting her to go back to “normal”, even though repressing her powers causes her to be sickly, weak and miserable. He also takes issue with the social life she gains at the Little Palace independent of him.

* AgeLift: In a physical sense. Though he's TheAgeless the books describe him as looking a little older than Alina (roughly late teens to early twenties). For [[Series/ShadowAndBone the series]], he's played by Creator/BenBarnes, who was 38 when filming the first season.

* DangerousForbiddenTechnique: His dabbling with his shadow related powers [[spoiler:ended up accidentally creating the Shadow Fold.]]

* DrowningPit: [[spoiler: A girl he befriended at 13, Annika, betrayed him by luring him into a lake and using her Tidemaker powers to freeze it over after learning he’s a living amplifier]].

* TheExtremistWasRight / VillainHasAPoint: The following ''Crows'' and ''Nikolai'' duologies illustrate just how terribly Grisha are treated around the world outside of Ravka (save for Novyi Zem) and how new developments in technology and warfare could either enslave or wipe them out altogether. ''The Witch of Duva'' and ''The Demon in the Woods'' take place in a time when Ravkan Grisha were forced to live as fugitives in fear of being slaughtered. And even at the time of the original trilogy a ''lot'' of non-magical Ravkan people still hate and fear the Grisha, despite the Second Army being all that stands between them and conquest by Fjerda or Shu Han; if the Shadow Fold had been destroyed and the need for the Second Army diminished, Ravka might well have turned against its former protectors. All of this serves to vindicate the Darkling’s cause to make a ''truly'' safe place for Grisha. Plus he's had to endure numerous incompetent and corrupt Ravkan kings in the past, and the King he currently serves [[spoiler:and attempts to depose]], Alexander III, is genuinely awful.
* FauxAffablyEvil: He is very suave and seductive in nearly all his scenes, which only serves to increase his cold and manipulative aura.
%%%* ForcefulKiss: A few with Alina.
* FromNobodyToNightmare: [[spoiler:He started out as one of a persecuted few, constantly on the run from those hunting Grisha. His experiences as a child led him to first make Ravka safe for Grisha -- and then scheme to take over the world.]]
* GoodScarsEvilScars: His face is faintly scarred by a volcra attack after the end of ''Shadow and Bone''.

* UsedToBeASweetKid: [[spoiler: Baghra]] says he used to be just a brilliant, talented boy. The short story ''The Demon in the Wood'' features a 13 year old Darkling (then Eryk, to hide his identity for safety) and gives insight into what his childhood was like. [[spoiler:His narrowly escaping being murdered by his new friend, who wants to use his remains as an amplifier, being forced to kill her and another boy who also wanted his bones, and framing the nearby otkazat’sya village for their deaths which results in ''their'' slaughter as well, clearly breaks something inside him.]]

* AcheyScars: In Siege and Storm, [[spoiler: Alina gets one from the Darkling's shadow soldiers. It itches whenever the Darkling is near.]]
* TheAgeless: What Alina supposed to become, considering the amount of power she wields. [[spoiler: [[BroughtDownToNormal She looses it later.]] ]]

* BroughtDownToNormal: [[spoiler: Ultimately Alina's fate at the end of Ruin and Rising is to lose all of her powers.]]

%%%* DrunkWithPower: This happens to Alina [[spoiler: when she combines two amplifiers]] early in the second book.

%%%* TheLeader: [[spoiler: Of the Second Army.]]

%%%* MentorsNewHope: For Baghra,
* MessianicArchetype: She's [[TheChosenOne the Chosen One]], has a group of loyal followers, gets betrayed by someone she trusted, defeats a great evil, [[spoiler:figuratively dies and is resurrected]].

* FaceHeelRevolvingDoor: It's hard to keep track of who's side she's really on.

* EveryoneHasStandards: When first met, she was eager to fall into the Darkling's good graces. However, she has nothing but disdain for him after his actions resulted in the deaths of her beloved aunt Liliyana and her adoptive cousin.

* GirlFriday: To Nikolai, in ''King of Scars'' she is his advisor.

* ParentalSubstitute: In some ways, her aunt Liliyana was a proper mother figure to Zoya than her real mother.
* ProudBeauty: She is beautiful and she knows and enjoys it.
* WeatherManipulation: As a squaller she can summon lightning and manipulate the wind. [[spoiler: By the end of King of Scars she also possesses ElementalPowers as she shows the ability to summon wind, water, and fire.]]

* RelationshipUpgrade: With Genya in ''Ruin and Rising.'' [[spoiler:''King of Scars'' revealed they married some time after the war.]]

[[folder:Nikolai Lantsov /[[spoiler:Sturmhond]]]]

[[folder:The queen]]

* NoNameGiven: Her name is never said in the books.

[[folder:Nikolai Lantsov/[[spoiler:Sturmhond]]]]

[[folder:The Darkling/[[spoiler:Aleksander Morozova]]]]

-

* ScarilyCompetentTracker: It's said of Mal that he can "turn rocks into rabbits." He's so good he can even track a sea-serpent ''on the open ocean''.

* TheExtremistWasRight / VillainHasAPoint: The following ''Crows'' and ''Nikolai'' duologies illustrate just how terribly Grisha are treated around the world outside of Ravka (save for Novyi Zem) and how new developments in technology and warfare could either enslave or wipe them out altogether. ''The Witch of Duva'' and ''The Demon in the Woods'' take place in a time when Grisha, even in Ravka, were forced to live as fugitives in fear of being slaughtered. And even at the time of the original trilogy a ''lot'' of non-magical Ravkan people still hate and fear Grisha, despite the Second Army being all that stands between them and conquest by Fjerda or Shu Han; if the Shadow Fold had been destroyed and the need for the Second Army diminished, Ravka might well have turned against its former protectors. All of this serves to vindicate the Darkling’s cause to make a ''truly'' safe place for Grisha. Plus he's had to endure numerous incompetent and corrupt Ravkan kings in the past, and the King he currently serves [[spoiler:and attempts to depose]], Alexander III, is genuinely awful.

* TheExtremistWasRight / VillainHasAPoint: The following ''Crows'' and ''Nikolai'' duologies showcase just how terribly Grisha are treated around the world outside of Ravka, and how new developments in technology and warfare could either enslave or wipe them out altogether. ''The Witch of Duva'' and ''The Demon in the Woods'' take place in a time when Grisha, even in Ravka, were forced to live as fugitives in fear of being slaughtered. And even at the time of the original trilogy a ''lot'' of non-magical Ravkan people still hate and fear Grisha, despite the Second Army being all that stands between them and conquest by Fjerda or Shu Han; if the Shadow Fold had been destroyed and the need for the Second Army diminished, Ravka might well have turned against its former protectors. All of this serves to vindicate the Darkling’s cause to make a ''truly'' safe place for Grisha. Plus he's had to endure numerous incompetent and corrupt Ravkan kings in the past, and the King he currently serves [[spoiler:and attempts to depose]], Alexander III, is genuinely awful.

->'''Played by:''' Ben Barnes

* TheExtremistWasRight / VillainHasAPoint: The following Crows and Nikolai duologies showcase just how terribly Grisha are treated around the world outside of Ravka, and how new developments in technology and warfare could either enslave or wipe them out altogether. “The Witch of Duva” and “The Demon in the Woods” take place in a time when Grisha, even in Ravka, were forced to live as fugitives. And even at the time of the original trilogy a ''lot'' of non-magical Ravkan people still hate and fear Grisha, despite the Second Army being all that stands between them and conquest by Fjerda or Shu Han; and if the Shadow Fold had been destroyed and the need for the Second Army diminished, Ravka might well have turned against its former protectors. All of this serves to vindicate the Darkling’s cause to make a ''truly'' safe place for Grisha. Plus he's had to endure numerous incompetent and corrupt Ravkan kings in the past, and the King he currently serves [[spoiler:and attempts to depose]], Alexander III, is genuinely awful.

* TheExtremistWasRight / VillainHasAPoint: The following two duologies showcase much more than the original trilogy just how terribly Grisha are treated/executed around the world, and how new developments in technology and warfare could either enslave or wipe them out altogether. “The Witch of Duva” and “The Demon in the Woods” take place in a time when Grisha, even in Ravka, were forced to live as fugitives. And even at the time of the original trilogy a ''lot'' of non-magical Ravkan people still hate and fear Grisha, despite the Second Army being all that stands between them and conquest by Fjerda or Shu Han. All of this serves to vindicate the Darkling’s cause to make a ''truly'' safe place for Grisha. In addition he's had to endure serving numerous incompetent and corrupt Ravkan kings in the past, and the King he currently serves [[spoiler:and attempts to depose]], Alexander III, is genuinely awful.

* TheExtremistWasRight / VillainHasAPoint: The following two duologies showcase much more than the original trilogy just how terribly and even violently Grisha are treated around the world, and how new developments in technology and warfare could enslave or wipe them out altogether. “The Witch of Duva” and "The Demon in the Woods" take place in a time when Grisha, even in Ravka, were forced to live as fugitives; even at the time of the original trilogy a lot of non-magical people in Ravka still hate and fear Grisha, despite the Second Army being all that's standing between them and conquest by Fjerda or Shu Han. All of this serves to vindicate the Darkling’s cause to make a ''truly'' safe place for Grisha. In addition he's had to suffer through the rule of numerous incompetent and corrupt Ravkan kings in the past, and the King he currently serves [[spoiler:and attempts to depose]], Alexander III, is genuinely awful.

* TheExtremistWasRight / VillainHasAPoint: The following two duologies showcase much more than the original trilogy just how terribly and even violently Grisha are treated around the world. “The Witch of Duva” takes place in a time when Grisha, even in Ravka, were forced to live as fugitives. All of this serves to vindicate the Darkling’s cause to make a safe place for Grisha. In addition he's had to suffer through the rule of numerous incompetent and corrupt Ravkan kings in the past, and the King he currently serves [[spoiler:and attempts to depose]], Alexander III, is genuinely awful.

* TheAgeless: The Darkling states that he is 120 years old, but it's implied that [[Really700YearsOld he's much older.]] [[spoiler:It turns out that he accidentally created the Shadow Fold, which is around four hundred years old, so he's older even than that.]]

* CrazyJealousGuy: Towards Alina; [[spoiler:he leaves Mal to die in the Shadow Fold and later transforms Nikolai into a volcra at least partly because Alina care so deeply for them.]]
* DarkAndTroubledPast: Explored in ''The Demon in the Woods;'' [[spoiler:when he was a child, he and his mother spent their lives on the run since Grisha were feared and hunted, and when he actually made a friend she ended up trying to ''murder'' him so she could use his remains as an amplifier.]]

* TheExtremistWasRight / VillainHasAPoint: The following two duologies showcase much more than the original trilogy just how terribly and even violently Grisha are treated around the world. “The Witch of Duva” takes place in a time when Grisha, even in Ravka, were forced to live as fugitives. All of this serves to vindicate the Darkling’s cause to make a safe place for Grisha.
** Also the King he [[spoiler:attempts to depose]], Alexander III, is genuinely awful.

* UsedToBeASweetKid: [[spoiler: Baghra]] says he used to be just a brilliant, talented boy. The short story ''The Demon in the Wood'' features a 13 year old Darkling (then Eryk, to hide his identity for safety) and gives insight into what his childhood was like. [[spoiler:His narrowly escaping being murdered by his new friend, who wants to use his remains as an amplifier, having to kill her and another boy, and framing the nearby otkazat’sya village for their deaths which results in ''their'' slaughter as well, clearly breaks something inside him.]]

* HandicappedBadass: [[spoiler:He loses on of his arms in the war, but he remains a badass.]]

The younger Ravkan prince. [[spoiler:Becomes the king of Ravka after his father's abdication and his brother death.]]

The younger Ravkan prince. [[spoiler:Becomes the king of Ravks after his father's abdication and his brother death.]]

The younger Ravkan prince. He's probably prettier than you.

The protagonist of the series and TheChosenOne, one of the most powerful Grishas who has ever lived and the only one capable of destroying the [[AnimalisticAbomination volcra]] and the [[{{Mordor}} Shadow Fold.]]

%%%%* VillainousCrush: Has a ''severe'' case of this for Alina.
* VisionaryVillain: His goal is to make Ravka a great nation and a haven for other Grisha.

* GreenEyedMonster: Initially, Zoya doesn't like Alina because of she's jealous of how the Darkling favours Alina and all the attention Alina gets in the Little Palace.

* EveryoneHasStandards: When first met, she was eager to fall into the Darkling's good graces. However, she has nothing but disdain for him after his actions resulted in the deaths of her beloved aunt Liliyana and her adoptive cousin.

* TheAgeless: The Darkling states that he is 120 years old, but it's implied that [[Really700YearsOld he's much older.]]

* AmbitionIsEvil: He wants to make the world a safer place for Grisha, so he'll just conquer the world. The Shadow Fold was also brought about by him experimenting too much and too darkly with magic.

* EvenBadMenLoveTheirMamas: Played with. Darkling sees his mother as someone who can share his immortal life, but blinds her when she helps Alina. But then later when she [[spoiler: commits suicide]], he not only tries to ''stop'' her, but Alina feels him grieving through their link.

* UsedToBeASweetKid: [[spoiler: Baghra]] says he used to be just a brilliant, talented boy. Short story ''The Demon in the Wood'' features a 13 year old Darkling (then Eryk, to hide his identity for safety) and gives insight into what his childhood was like. [[spoiler:His narrowly escaping being murdered by his new friend, who wants to use his remains as an amplifier, having to kill her and another boy, and framing the nearby otkazat’sya village for their deaths which results in ''their'' slaughter as well, clearly breaks something inside him.]]

A powerful squaller in the second army. [[spoiler:She later becomes a member of the Grisha Triumvate and Commander of the Second Army.]]

* Determinator: She is extremely ruthless and determined to serve her country no matter the cost.

* EveryoneHasStandards: When first met, she was eager to fall into the Darkling's good graces. However, she has nothing but disdain for him after his actions resulted in the deaths of her beloved aunt Liliyana and her adoptive cousin.

* WeatherManipulation: As a squaller she can summon lightning and manipulate the wind. [[spoiler: By the end of King of Scars she also possesses ElementalPowers as she shows the ability to summon wind, water, and fire]]

A powerful squaller in the second army. [[spoiler:She later becomes a member of the Grisha Triumvate.]]

* WeatherManipulation: As a squaller she can summon lightning and manipulate the wind.

A powerful squallor in the second army. [[spoiler:She later becomes a member of the Grisha Triumvate.]]